


tell me you'll stay (across a million years)

by blacksatinpointeshoes



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Coworkers - Freeform, Crack Treated Seriously, Dysfunctional Family, F/M, Family Drama, Fluff and Crack, Gen, I don't know what I'm doing, I'm Sorry, Kasius is kind of a dork, The Author Regrets Nothing, The Kasiuses are a business family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 23:22:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13375236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blacksatinpointeshoes/pseuds/blacksatinpointeshoes
Summary: "It's my job," says Sinara. But of course it's not just that. It's the action, the drama, the secrets kept between just her and him - and most of all, it's him.or, the Kasinara crack coffee shop AU no one asked for or wanted.





	tell me you'll stay (across a million years)

**Author's Note:**

> yeah... I got nothing. many thanks to AllTheNamesIWantedWereUsed (mouth-of-god-fist-of-bone on tumblr) for her encouragement. enjoy :)

“Sinara!” says Kasius, smiling pleasantly as always. “It’s good to see you.”

The quiet woman shoots him a look halfway between affection and fury as she pulls her apron over her head. Pinning on her nametag, emblazoned with the shining Lighthouse logo next to ‘SINARA’ in all capitals, she gives him a curt nod. “I work here, Kasius.”

His smile dims. “That doesn’t mean I can’t be happy to see you,” he says smoothly, but leaves her be.

She watches him go.

John Kasius is the youngest child in the Kasius family, and, metaphorically speaking, the youngest heir to the Kasius throne. Well, Sinara thinks, it’s only halfway metaphorical. The multimillion dollar business of Lighthouse Lattes coffee shops has brought steaming drinks to every state in America and made ‘Kasius’ a recognisable name.

_John_ Kasius is only slightly more recognisable, because he is a disaster.

For a family that runs a coffee shop chain, however massive that chain may be, the Kasiuses are known most prevalently for the _drama._ Who is the favourite child? Who will inherit the family business? What on earth is the first name of Lighthouse Lattes’ CEO, known only to the world as “Mr. Kasius”?

John Kasius had displayed remarkable aptitude for running a business at a young age. So when he was merely twenty, he was given control of not one but _four_ coffee shops in downtown New York City. He was destined to fail from the beginning. Two of the stores nearly went bankrupt. The younger Kasius was, essentially, exiled to Minnesota, where he now presides over a single store with barely ten employees.

This would be an amusing story about a young aristocrat’s failure, if that was where it ended. But of course, with the Kasiuses, nothing was quite that easy. That was the manner of the family.

Rumours began to fly among those who followed along with the gossip, and they all came back to one word: _sabotage._ The theory is that Michael had, through a combination of bribery and possibly even thievery, destroyed both his brother’s business and his chance at inheriting the company.

The truth isn’t too far from that. But only two people knows the full story. One of them? _She_ barely even talks.

“Oh!” Kasius’s voice snaps through Sinara’s reverie as he turns back to her, his smile strained. “Sinara, I – my brother is coming later today.” She can see the tenseness in the lines of his face. “Officially it’s a health inspection, but apparently –” Kasius clears his throat in irritation, “-there have been, quote, an ‘influx in complaints about our newest addition to the menu,’ unquote.”

Sinara, who has began cleaning the coffee machine, frowns. “The Destroyer?” The latte, which has anywhere from three to six shots of expresso, is a favourite among college students. As a matter of fact, it’s only gotten more popular the more caffeine is allowed to be added.

Kasius grits his teeth and pauses, choosing his words with care. “Yes,” he says finally. “We are supposedly under review and may have the product removed on account of quality.”

Sinara has a few choice words she could say about that, but merely nods and turns back to her work.

“Will you help me?” Kasius asks, and there is desperation in his voice. Slowly Sinara faces him again, studying his big, dark, boyish eyes and the curls that falls onto his forehead no matter how hard he tries to control them. “Please?”

“Don’t beg, Kasius,” she says coolly. “I’ll help.”

“Thank you,” he says genuinely, sighing heavily in relief as some of the tension slips from his shoulders. _“Thank you.”_

“It’s my job,” says Sinara, and continues doing just that.

 

* * *

 

The day goes by ordinarily, for the most part. The regulars come and go, like always. Sinara and the other baristas have a hell of a time making fun of them.

The frumpy blonde comes in, demands that “Lady Basha” be written on her latte cup, and then orders a drink so complicated Sinara has to repeat it three times and then take notes. For her efforts, she is rewarded with a steady glare from Ms. Basha, who seems to only be around to make Sinara’s life as hard as possible.

After the woman leaves, Sinara’s favourite regulars appear: Daisy and Robbie. Daisy, who actually suggested the idea of the Destroyer latte, has a caffeine dependency the size of the moon. Robbie, on the other hand, drinks only tea, and Sinara is fairly sure he would never set foot in a coffee shop if it weren’t for his girlfriend. They order their usual orders and sit in their usual seat. They are so cute it makes Sinara want to vomit.

“Is everything alright?” It’s Kasius, at her shoulder. Sinara jumps, then scowls. She hates to be startled.

“Fine,” she says, voice clipped. “Thank you.”

“You’ve just spilled coffee on the counter,” Kasius points out, and Sinara glances down to see that the scalding liquid has missed the cup she set out and instead is running across the black countertop. She barely refrains from groaning.

_“Shit,”_ she mumbles under her breath, reaching for a towel, but Kasius is faster.

“Let me.”

She tries to snatch it from his hands but he pulls it away, Sinara’s arm snagging his wrist instead and pulling him to face her. They’re close – closer than they should be – and Sinara suddenly becomes aware of all the flyaways in her ponytail, the smudges in her concealer.

She can feel his breath against the hollow of her neck. He smells like hot chocolate.

“Give me the damn towel, Kasius. The coffee isn’t going to clean itself.”

When he relents, she mops up the spill with practised speed, ignoring the way her hands shake just so. Her heart is racing and her cheeks feel hot and oh _God,_ she can feel Kasius’s eyes on her back.

“I’m sorry,” he offers from across the little space behind the counter. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I just –”

Sinara nods to Robbie and Daisy in the corner. Robbie has said something to make her laugh, and mirth dances freely in Daisy’s eyes. “I like to watch them sometimes,” she says, her voice gruff. “I got carried away.”

Silence falls over the two of them. “Oh,” says Kasius quietly, after a moment’s pause.

“Don’t hold it against me.” Sinara forces some irritation back in her voice, to mask the emotional openness she can’t help but feel.

“I would never.”

Despite herself, she turns around to look at him. He is wearing a suit and by all means should look out of place in this coffee shop – he should look _ridiculous._ But he doesn’t. He looks clean, professional, and crisp. Sinara can’t help but be endeared. By any stretch of the imagination, Sinara knows that whatever is happening between them cannot stay. But after all they have been through, there is a measure of trust between them that she has never felt anywhere else.

“I need to get back to work, Kasius,” she murmurs, even though he has not asked her to do anything.

He swallows hard and she can see the disappointment, the vulnerability, in his eyes. “Of course.” Kasius pauses and wets his lips. “I truly am sorry, Sinara –”

“It’s fine.” Her words are short. Her heart is in her throat again. She cannot let this get out of hand. “I told you. It’s fine.”

 

* * *

 

At five thirty, a half hour before closing, Michael Kasius sweeps into Lighthouse Lattes with airs and graces. Sinara nearly shatters a mug with her grip on the handle. Instead she forces herself into a semblance of calm and bares her teeth in his direction. “Hello, sir,” she says politely. “Are you looking for K - John?”

Kasius’s brother is too busy sneering at the interior design to pay any attention to Sinara. “I suppose I am,” he sighs, haughty and vain as always.

“And would you like anything to drink, sir?” Sinara asks, silently applauding herself for how well she is keeping the fury out of her voice.

“I wouldn’t,” Michael simpers. “Considering the state of this place as it is. _Most_ of our smaller businesses don’t require inspections from higher ups on account of possible health violations.”

“Most of our smaller businesses,” says Kasius, emerging from the back room as he buttons his jacket, “are not run by a member of the family, brother. How are you?”

Michael ignores him, instead running a finger smack across one of the recently acquired paintings decorating the walls. Quietly, Sinara watches Kasius wince but keep silent. “I wish I could say I like what you’ve done with the place,” Michael says instead. “It looks like an indie café in downtown New York. I thought you were done chasing that dream.”

With incredible control, Kasius takes a breath and extends a hand towards one of the nearby tables, where both of the brothers sit. “We both know why that didn’t succeed, Michael. In fact, I’m often surprised at how often you bring it up. You’re walking on very thin ice.”

The elder Kasius runs a hand through his hair and smirks. “Am I?” Michael asks, voice as thick and smooth as honey. “No one even remembers anymore. The only recent news that so much as touches an iota of the truth is a scandalous gossip magazine that can hardly be called journalism. If _that’s_ how you plan to get your story to Father, I’m barely intimidated.”

Kasius’s jaw clenches. Surreptitiously, Sinara worms her hand towards the intercom for the drive through and presses the ‘record’ function, her heart hammering as the red light blinks to life. “I’d prefer if you didn’t rub salt in the wound, Michael.”

Gleeful, Michael laughs and leans back. Sinara begins to clean the rest of the mugs from earlier in the day. “Why? Because I’ve won? Because all our lives we’ve been in competition and _I_ came out on top?”

“Michael,” says Kasius calmly, steel lacing his tone, “I thought we were meeting for a health inspection.”

“The inspection doesn’t matter,” Michael says, his voice rumbling with pride. “I have enough influence and revenue that anything can be falsified.

“Falsified?” Kasius asks, and Sinara hears his voice begin to shake. “Again? Michael, there’s no reason. You have everything. You don’t want this – you can’t want this, too.”

Michael leans in. “This? An exiled hole of a place in Minnesota?” He laughs again, cold and mocking. “No. I don’t want this. But to watch you _fall,_ brother – to watch your name vanish – that is where I take my satisfaction.”

Sinara glances over to the still-recording intercom and exhales shakily. At the table, Kasius grows far more visibly distressed. “But this is all –”

His eyes flicker over to meet Sinara’s, only momentarily, and his fingers lace in his lap. “This is all I have, Michael. I am no threat to you.”

Michael has watched the direction of Kasius’s gaze and his own stare darkens with anger. “John, I know that you carry around this bitch like a safety blanket, but does she have to be here?”

Kasius stands, slamming his hands on the table, and Sinara stares in horror and astonishment. “That is _enough.”_

“Send her out.”

“She is not an object!” Kasius’s words are as angry as she has ever heard him. “In fact, if you cared to treat any of your employees like _people,_ you would know she has been with me since New York. Since you destroyed my stock and falsified my records and kept the profits for yourself. _You_ create joy by tearing people down; I am happy with my art.” A pause, a breath. He meets her eyes again. “And Sinara.”

Michael snorts, but Sinara’s world is flipped upside down. “You sound like a lovesick boy, brother.”

Sinara reaches out and turns off the recording. “He’s right,” she says finally, her lips curling into a smile. “I am not an object.” Pressing play, their conversation comes through the intercom. It is tinny and far away, but the words are clear. Michael stares, his face paling. “And it is your mistake that you underestimate me.”

“Turn that off,” demands the elder Kasius. “Now, turn that off now!”

Sinara lets the conversation run as she steps out from behind the counter. “Michael,” she says sweetly, “now that we know you have no issue with falsifying records, I’d like this trip to be erased from your log. I’d like for this branch of Lighthouse Lattes to be left operational, and I’d like any of your presumably fabricated complaints about the Destroyer to be erased.”

“This is blackmail,” Michael whispers.

“No,” says Kasius, stepping by Sinara’s side. “With you involved, it’s what has to be done.”

“Father will never support you when he hears about this –”

It is Kasius’s turn to laugh. “You are in no position to make demands, brother,” he says smoothly. “If I were you, I would leave while your dignity remains.”

Michael’s humiliation is a prize for both Kasius and Sinara on his way out. The little coffee shop seems to brighten with his exit.

“That was brilliant,” says Kasius, taking her hands.

“I always am.” Sinara can’t help the smile that comes to her lips.

“I know,” says Kasius, his eyes as joyful as a child’s. “I know – god, can I kiss you?”

“I’ve been waiting for you to ask,” says Sinara against her better judgement, and he sweeps her off her feet.

**Author's Note:**

> as always, comments and kudos are very much appreciated. I can be found at thoughtsbubble on tumblr if you'd like to yell at or with me :)


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